Solo RPGs: how to play a tabletop RPG on your own
You don't need a group to roleplay. Solo players use oracles, prompts, gamebooks or an AI narrator in place of a game master. Here's how each way works and the games worth starting with.
How solo roleplaying works
In a group game, the game master describes the world and decides what happens. Playing alone, you need something else to surprise you, because if you decide everything yourself it stops feeling like a game. Solo RPGs solve that in four main ways.
1. Oracles and GM emulators
You ask a question (“Is anyone in the tavern?”), roll dice and read the answer from a table. Random event tables add twists you didn't plan. This works with almost any RPG, including D&D, and it's the most flexible approach.
2. Journaling games
Prompts, often drawn from a deck of cards, push you to write a story in a notebook. There's little or no combat; the point is the character and what happens to them over time.
3. Solo gamebooks and adventures
Numbered sections tell you where to go next based on your choices and your dice rolls, like a choose-your-own-adventure book with real rules. Great for learning a system without a group.
4. AI narrators
An AI plays the game master: it describes the scene, plays the characters you meet and reacts to anything you type. You lose some of the surprise of rolling on tables, but you get a narrator that answers in full sentences and never runs out of story. Quillroll works this way, with health, inventory and a running memory of the story so the stakes stay real.
Solo RPGs worth starting with
| Game | What it is | Price | Why play it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ironsworn | Full RPG built for solo, co-op or group play | Free (pay what you want) | Low-magic fantasy where you swear vows and see them through. Its oracle tables and move system make it the most common starting point. |
| Mythic Game Master Emulator | GM emulator for any game | Paid | Ask yes/no questions, roll, and let the chaos factor surprise you. Works with whatever rules you already own. |
| Thousand Year Old Vampire | Journaling game | Paid | Write the centuries-long life of a vampire from prompts, forgetting memories as you go. Moody and character-driven, no combat. |
| Alone Against the Flames | Solo gamebook for Call of Cthulhu | Free PDF | A 1920s horror adventure that teaches the Call of Cthulhu rules as you play. Needs the free quick-start rules and dice. |
| Four Against Darkness | Pen-and-paper dungeon crawler | Paid | Draw the dungeon on graph paper as you explore it with a party of four. Fast, light and very replayable. |
Prices checked October 2026; check each publisher's page for the current offer.
Tips for your first solo session
- Start small. One character, one location, one problem. A missing person in a village is plenty.
- Ask, don't decide. When you're not sure what happens, roll or ask the oracle instead of choosing the outcome you want.
- Write a little. A few lines per scene is enough to remember the story next time.
- Use generators for prep. Our free name, town, tavern and encounter generators give you seeds in seconds.
Questions
Can you play a tabletop RPG alone?
Yes. Solo players replace the game master with oracle tables, prompts or a written adventure, and play the character and the world themselves. Some games are designed for it from the start.
What's the best solo RPG for beginners?
Ironsworn is a popular first choice: it's free, designed for solo play, and includes everything you need. If you'd rather not track rules at all, an AI text adventure like Quillroll lets you start playing in a minute.
Do I need dice for a solo RPG?
Most solo games use dice, but online dice rollers work fine. Journaling games may use a deck of cards, and AI narrators handle the randomness for you.
What is a GM emulator?
A set of tables that answers questions a game master would. You ask something like “Is the door locked?”, roll, and read the answer, sometimes with a twist.
Is an AI narrator a real solo RPG?
It's a different kind of solo play: the AI describes the world and reacts to whatever you write, while you focus on your character. Many solo players mix it with oracles and dice; others prefer the surprise of rolling on tables.